Defying the Rain
by Beyond An Anomaly
Summary: Tears were shed during this storm, as this rain reminds us all of the hope, pain, love, torture, friendship, betrayal, and danger that got us here and destroyed us, only to transform us into who we were meant to be coming out of this final battle against Venom. We lost so much during this war...yet we all have to walk away from the storm sometime...
1. Prologue

_**Attempt at making a Star Fox story. Take 2.**_

_**Hello, readers old and new! Thank you for clicking on that sheep and this title!**_

_**Now, some out there may remember this ol' story called "Star Fox: Odyssey". Well...i deleted it. Why? Well, it was five chapters, over 30,000 words long, and I wasn't even a tenth done with the story that I knew I would never finish. So, here's my second attempt at making a Star Fox series.**_

_**Ladies and gents, I give humbly to thee...Defying the Rain. Thanks for choosing this story, and I hope you enjoy it.**_

_**-BAA**_

* * *

The soft patter of raindrops could be heard from the pew I was sitting, as the pastor upfront began his sermon. Besides the patter echoing slightly through the chapel along with this very sermon, all was silent.

"Friends, relatives, and others who were acquainted with the deceased..." the robed man was standing on the podium, words booming through the chapel as a large portrait next to him was perched around a ring of a wide assortment of flowers. "We are gathered here not to mourn, but to celebrate this soul passing from this sinning, mortal world to the heavens above."

Looking a couple of rows over, I saw the fallen hero's love, and she was far from celebrating. Frankly, none of us were "celebrating", but out of all of us, that girl was the one who mourned the most. She was soon comforted by the man next to her, as he began to whisper into her ear, lips quivering. Her sniffling and seething were muffled in the collar of her consoler's jacket.

"This man was a great son, student, pilot, team-mate and most of all, a friend."

And hero. Why the hell does everyone forget "hero"?

Everyone in this chapel, (or at least everyone in this chapel who was still _living_), was close to death on too many occassions just so Lylat could still run peacefully like it always has instead of being run by a council of over-aged primate overlords. We were all so close to death, we could shake hands with it, flying like crazy people in our Arwings and being just a hair or two away from a laser to the center of our chests. And for what? Just to see another day and hear one of the greatest people I've ever met being labeled just a good _pilot _and _team-mate_?

He wasn't the only brave one we lost, fighting out there in that unforgiving hell people enjoy to call "space", but he was one far too many.

I turned around to see the man comforting the deceased's friend. Was he wearing... sunglasses? Well, I couldn't say I was surprised. His eyes were blood-shot, baggy and swollen from days of sleep deprivation and crying. Besides, he was a "tough guy". Of course he didn't want anyone to see him like this...the fallen hero and the consoler were the closest of brothers, after all; you couldn't have one without the other.

I knew how that felt, losing that other half.

The patter of rain escalted into an uproar of banging and clacking against the surface of the roof. As the pastor continued over this storm, my fiance held my hand tighter. The veil of her hat was hiding the gloss that covered both of her eyes, as I saw a tear slowly roll down her face. She would normally give a look of indifference to all she saw, but now, since our brutal fight, she found vulnerability that I didn't even know she had after all the years I knew her. I soon found her nestling her head into my shoulder, weeping softly. She was never an emotional person, yet this day was just to show just how changed we all were.

We were all scarred in our own way, showing new-found emotions or not.

It was outrageous and insane, all that we did that lead to this lost soul and then some. Our final fight against Venom...was it worth it? If you asked any member of society, they would tell you how much they'd appreciated our services and are "ever so grateful for what we've done", when in reality, they have no idea what we did, and chances are, they don't care. We left our homes to fight, (if we had a home to start with), and we came back a year later only to be blended in with the rest of society. Did we want to be worshipped as gods? No. Of course not.

But the least any of us wanted were people to understand just what it meant to be us and that what we did out there was more than just service. We were all a family now, a close-knit one, and not just "team-mates" and "pilots". Instead, what some of us got was a trip to the mental hospital, for others a rehabilitation center, and the rest of us got to try to live a regular life as a citizen for a change.

I heard a clash of thunder miles away while I leaned back in my seat, holding my fiance's hand tighter. I took in that portrait...

And I began to realize just how much I hated the rain.

* * *

_**Once more, thank you kindly for visiting the introduction of "Defying the Rain". Any and all advice/criticism would be graciously accepted to help this story further progress. Til the next update...**_

_**-BAA**_


	2. Impressions and Expectations

_**Ello, readers! Sorry about the wait. I've just been really busy lately, along with having a Writer's Block and what-not...**_

_**But like you care about the reasons. You came for the story, right? Well, I'll cut the chatter and get to the chapter; I'll just keep it short and say sorry for the update that took too long and I'll try to make a good updating schedule. **_

_**Now without further ado, I hope you enjoy, and thanks for reading. :)**_

_**-BAA**_

* * *

As I thought about the soft patter, I couldn't help but wonder how ironic it was that this very setting was exactly how our war with Venom began. The faint sound of rain against the roof of an ornate building...how could such a setting with the sound of soft raindrops in the serenity of a church be the beginning of one of the most catastrophic events any one of us would ever know?

Well, as we were all soon to find out from this war...

Some things just occur unexpectedly.

* * *

The planet Sauria is an environment few are that familiar with, since it always has been a planet unlike what many of us had seen before. Unlike Corneria, where most of us were raised, Sauria has several biomes for the mostly dinosaur or reptilian species that resided on the planet, with the occasional mammal to add to the overall population.

And Sauria, unlike Corneria, (or any other planet in Lylat, for that matter), is very technologically primitive, with its inhabitants living extremely simplistic eat-or-be-eaten lifestyles in caves, trees, burrows, or shacks for the higher class...

Making the stone palace we all resided in briefly stick out like a single grey cloud in a sky of perfect blue, even though the analogy could be considered an understatement on the very day us members of Star Fox and company attended what was considered the ceremony of the millennia.

(*)

"Okay, Falco," Fox McCloud fidgeted with his hair frantically with his fingers. "How do I look?"

Fox stared downward as Falco Lombardi glared at the fur on Fox's head and away from the bow-tie he was fixing around his captain's neck. The pheasant rolled his eyes.

"Like a prince." he sighed, rolling his eyes. "Now will ya calm down already?"

"Y-You know I can't do that!" Fox sputtered, accidentally spitting on Falco's face; the pheasant pursed his beak as he swiped the saliva off of his right eyelid. He then sighed, going back to work with the under-over through-the-loop technique. "I mean, do you not get what day this is?!"

"What type of a question is that?" Falco finished his work with the bow-tie, standing back with arms folded. "I've been helping ya plan this thing for a year now. Hell, that's my best tux you're wearing right now, and ya know how I feel about my best tux..."

"This is the biggest day of my life!" Fox turned to the nearest mirror and went back to combing his fingers through his 'do. It was almost as though he didn't even hear his wing man's response. "Or me and Krystal's lives, I should say..."

Indeed, the ceremony of the millennia was soon to commence, as the renowned saviour of Lylat, Fox McCloud, was soon to be married to "the darling of Star Fox", Krystal, who found a fondness in the planet Sauria and its inhabitants. The hero and captain of the most beloved band of mercenaries in Lylat betrothed to what some say was the most gorgeous vixen in the galaxy...what a large deal this was for all.

Falco, however, still rolled his eyes in disdain and stood in front of the mirror.

"Look, pal," Falco stated, giving his captain a raised eyebrow. "You're making this harder on yourself by stressin' like this. Don'tcha know just how ridiculous you're acting?"

"R-Ridiculous?!" Fox quickly chuckled. "What...what do you mean 'ridiculous'?!"

"Well, for starters, you've been acting squirrely the entire flight here, literally called every single male and female ya knew asking if they were gonna to be here, and..." Falco took a good look at Fox's hair and winced. He took his wings and quickly brushed through Fox's head, which the groom did not expect. "What did ya do to your hair?! It's all over the place!"

Fox swatted at Falco's wings, in the hopes that he would leave his mangly, ran-through-far-too-many-times mane alone.

"S-Stop that! What are you doing?!" Fox kept moving his head left and right, waving his paws at Falco's arms.

"A favor," Falco huffed. "Now will you just hold still?!"

"Falco! Stop it! THAT'S AN ORDER!"

"Will ya shut up and let me just-"

To interrupt this scuffle, two guests could be heard knocking on the groom's dressing room door.

"Oh, boys!" one of the voices called, which made Fox and Falco freeze. "May we come in?"

Fox gave Falco a pursed lip and menacing squint as Falco slowly pulled his wing away. He glared at the fox's head.

"Still looks like a mess." Falco shrugged, letting out a huff. Fox wanted to kill the wing man, even he was his best-man, but instead of yelling any obscenity towards the pheasant...

"Yeah!" Fox turned to the doorway. "I-It's open!"

The door slowly creaked open, as Slippy Toad happily strode in, pushing the elderly Peppy Hare in a silver wheelchair.

"Hey guys!" Slippy exclaimed with glee. "How's our groom doing?"

"Uh..." Fox turned to the mirror, with Falco's words haunting him. He began to brush through his hair again, not wishing for a bird's assistance. "Fine...I-I'm fine."

Falco smirked when he watched the poor groom fidget through his hair like a mad-man. He then turned to Peppy and Slippy.

"How's Krystal?"

"Oh..." Peppy leaned back in his wheelchair, adjusted the bifocals resting upon his greying muzzle. "We're not all that sure. But it's best to assume that she's doing alright."

"Ya hear that, buddy?" Falco said to Fox, who wasn't paying all that much attention. "You have nothing to worry about."

"Oh, don't tell me you're nervous, Fox!" Slippy laughed, shutting the door behind him. "There's nothing to worry about! If you can overcome aliens and evil monkeys, you can surely survive your own wedding!"

"Slippy's right, Fox." Falco turned Fox towards him, whose eyes were widened and pupils shrunken. "For once."

"Hey!" Slippy snapped out of his bouncy, ecstatic mood to confront the best-man. "Now's not the time for insults!"

"Slippy, there's always time to mess with you." Falco rolled his eyes. "One would think that after after a decade or so, you'd realize that."

"Why I oughta-"

"What? Slap me to death with your purse?"

Slippy clasped onto the satchel under his jacket, which hung around his chest that had emergency supplies in, such as his inhaler and a miniature tool kit.

"It is not a purse!" Slippy scoffed. "It's a European man-satchel!"

"Sure it is, pretty toad..."

"Are you calling me a sissy?!"

"Well, if the dress fits..."

"That's quite enough, boys." Peppy adjusted his glasses as Falco folded his arms in silent defiance. Slippy, however, immediately took the order.

"Y-Yes, sir!" Slippy saluted the rabbit. The rabbit's words were law to him.

Peppy looked at the frogs stance and rolled his eyes.

"At ease..." Peppy sighed. It was times like this where he wished people like him didn't take the rabbit's position of "General" too seriously. He was always just an adviser, even in his younger days. Just because he was granted the position after Allistor Pepper retired because of how that Aparoid invasion affected him years back, did anything really change? He was still the same rabbit; salutation just wasn't necessary.

Once Slippy put his hand back at his side, Peppy rolled his chair up to Fox McCloud. Fox turned towards the wheelchair, looking downward at his commander.

"Now," Peppy smiled up at the fox. "Let me get a good look at you..."

Peppy pushed his glasses back up his wrinkled muzzle, weary eyes glowing when he saw Fox's tuxedo. He slowly turned his head to Falco, who was walking slowly towards the two men.

"Isn't this your tuxedo, Lombardi?"

"Yep," Falco, even after the announcement of Peppy's promotion, treated Peppy as he always had; though some may have considered Falco's casual slang towards General Hare "distasteful", he found it actually nice. "Sure is."

Falco grinned, placing his wing on Fox's shoulder. Fox grinned a little, slowly losing his anxiety.

Even if it was slowly, his closest friends helped him relax just a small bit.

"Well, Fox," Slippy scampered up to Fox and took his stance back behind Peppy's wheelchair; as Peppy got older, the frog took it upon himself to be his personal assistant. It was only the least he could do for the man who changed his life... "I think you look awesome!"

"Oh...uh..." Fox was finally comfortable with his hair and chuckled a bit. Though he got plenty of them, Fox was never one to take compliments...as an adult, anyway. "Thanks."

"Fox...you remind me so much of your father when he got married."

Especially that one, and Fox somehow went right back to his feeling of uneasiness.

Fox wasn't too sure what he was feeling, but whenever Peppy brought up the late James McCloud, it never sat right with him. His father was the perfect man to him, and there was no way in _hell _ he was in any way perfect. Pilot? Sure. Team-mate? Yes. Hero? Oh, of course, after what he went through.

But an incarnate of the man many idolized even almost twenty years after his death?

Never.

How could he even reply to such an insane comment? He never could in the past...

"I..." Fox looked to his left to see Falco portray a look of annoyance on his face. He always found it bizarre how whenever Peppy ever brought up a comparison of James to Fox, (which was, of course, often), Falco would roll his eyes and sulk.

And Falco found this the perfect time to make his exit during this silence.

"Well," Falco stared down at his watch and turned towards the dressing room door. "I've gotta go out and make sure everything's ship-shape. Ya got thirty minutes, Fox."

"Oooh, we oughta head to our seats too!" Slippy began to push Peppy towards the door, and Falco held the door open.

"Just wait, Slippy," Peppy made a motion towards Slippy to turn the chair around, and Slippy followed the order without question. The rabbit took one last look at the groom.

"You really do look like your father, Fox..." Peppy's wrinkles lifted. "He'd be so proud to see this..."

Slippy nodded in agreement as he and Peppy rolled out the room. Fox let out a sigh and turned back to his mirror, brushing off his tuxedo. Falco, who was still holding the door open, notice that his friend was more quiet than usual...

"Something the matter, buddy?"

"Uh..." Fox bit his lip and shook his head. "N-No...no. There isn't."

"Bull." Falco tisked, closing the door and walking back over to Fox. "What is it?"

"Well..." Fox sighed again, and he couldn't help but hear the soft sound of raindrops tap against the ceiling above him. Normally, this would soothe him...not today, of course. "What if something goes wrong?"

"Like...?"

"I dunno...maybe I could mess up my vows, o-or trip over Krystal's dress, or..."

Falco covered Fox's mouth with his wing. Fox stared at his best-man silently.

"Look," Falco stated. "You, nor Krystal, are living up to anyone's potential. If ya screw up, no one's gonna give you a hard time about it...not even me!"

Fox tilted his head, questioning the statement.

"Call your wedding an excuse for me to NOT insult your imperfections. Now," he continued. "If you're worrying about being compared to your father, forget it. If anything..." Falco said this hesitantly. "Peppy's giving you a compliment. This wedding isn't a matter of life or death. The fate of the world isn't at stake. It's not a test of skill. No one's out to murder you. This is the biggest day of your life, and I swear nothing obscene's gonna happen!"

Falco smirked.

"I guess ya still aren't used to a day with no violence or anything for a while now, huh? How long ago was the Anglar thing? A year or two?"

Fox looked up, stared back at Falco, and nodded, with a blue wing still over his muzzle.

"Damn..." Falco let out a chuckle. "Guess time flies when you're doin' nothing, huh? Gets to ya, doesn't it?"

Fox couldn't help but smile, and Falco noticed the grin stretch over the fox's face.

"Ha, see? There we go! That's the smile you should save for the aisle!" Falco took his wing off, and Fox kept his smile on.

"Thanks, Falco." Fox held his hands behind his back, feeling slightly more confident as the rain's soothing ambience finally get to him.

"Not a problem." Falco walked out the door, right after he ran a finger through a piece of Fox's hair back to the side it belonged. "Just don't sweat it, will ya?"

And thus, Falco promptly left, with Fox feeling his heart slow and head slowly begin to stop spinning. He looked at the clock placed on the top of the mirror...

Only fifteen minutes left until his life changed forever...and he'd only have the love of his life to impress.


	3. No Response

The wedding was indeed quite a peaceful occasion, where after such a long amount of time worth of preparations, relaxation could commence at last. Falco assured his dear friend there was nothing to worry about during the occasion, and he seemed to be correct…

There were two men attending the service, however, who were still hard at work…

The two's voices echoed in the darkened, cluttered study of the stone palace, which was a corridor or two away from the wedding itself.

"Are you for certain this'll work, toadie?"

"O-Oh, I'm sure of it!"

The toad took out his reading glasses and opened his laptop, while the lupine accompanying him glared at the screen. The laptop made a beeping noise as it turned on, and soon enough, the desktop lit up. Fingers were already tapping against the keyboard in a swift pace, leading to a few windows opening up displaying binary codes and technology jargon that only the middle-aged toad knew.

"Alrighty, Wolf." Beltino Toad gestured to the silver suitcase right behind the laptop. "Now if you can just open that case there and plug the jump drive into the outlet…we should get in."

Wolf O' Donnell was normally not one to take orders. Or go to his arch rival's wedding. Or even be invited to such an event. But after destroying aliens and bringing down evil empires, that apparently earned him and his team the invite. As for accepting, well…

There was work the frog and wolf had to do.

Wolf hooked up the plug, which connected to two headsets with microphones attached. Beltino put on his pair, and Wolf thoroughly put on his.

"We should get connection any moment now…" Beltino tapped each key in no particular combination, with Wolf still in wonder how a member of his notorious gang of mercenaries was hired on a top-secret, Cornerian Army stealth mission, with a father of his arch rival's posse as the mind behind the operation.

Soon enough, a new window opened up on the desktop to show a slowly loading image of a dimly lit corridor of what appeared to be a military base. A voice box appeared at the bottom of the screen, as a loading bar appeared, showing 20%..

45%...

70%...

90%...

"He's connected." Beltino gave Wolf a gesture to the bar. "Go ahead."

Wolf nodded and looked over the toad's shoulder. He began to speak into the microphone...

"O'Donnell to Powalski." Wolf stated into the microphone. "Come in, Powalski."

It took a few moments, until a raspy response went through the headsets of the two workers…

"This is Powalski to O'Donnell," the assigned agent said with a whisper through the miniature earpiece of his own. From a central base in Zoness, the other side of the galaxy, he still sounded quite clear. "I'm in."

(*)

As Fox was still having a few more moments to himself in his dressing room, Falco made his way to the front of the aisle. While the best man strode through one of the many settings of the stone palace, he took in the amount of people that arrived for this occasion.

There actually weren't as many people as one would expect at such a famous wedding, and there wasn't a single camera or reporter in sight. Fox and Krystal made the decision to make their ceremony quiet, with only the members of Star Fox and other close friends invited, along with making sure that not a single person besides the invitees would know about the ceremony; they figured it just wasn't the place for galaxy-wide publicity.

Falco brushed off his suit while walking down the aisle and turned his head to look over his left shoulder while walking; the maid of honor was to meet with him in the front shortly…

In the very back of the aisle, Slippy sat on the far right edge of the pew, with Peppy sitting in his wheelchair outside of the bench. The frog couldn't help turning his head left and right and up and down, with eyes darting in every possible direction to take in the scenery of the service soon to commence.

"Wow, Peppy," Slippy gasped, with a smile of amazement stretching across his face. "Isn't all this just GORGEOUS?"

The aisle was lined with silvery-blue roses in pearly white urns, with sapphire ribbons tied around the urns. A brightly lit candle chandelier hung above the aisle, with rows of candles going across the stone walls. It was a picturesque, serene occasion, which had the sound of raindrops tapping against the windows to add onto the already peaceful event.

"It sure is, Slippy..." Peppy squinted his eyes even harder as he weakly turned his head from left to right, trying to grasp onto the whole "GORGEOUS!" aspect. At the age of sixty-four and after several years of flashing lasers mixed with dizzying blackness, the rabbit's eyesight was slowly beginning to quit on him. Carrots didn't entirely cover it, neither. "It sure is..."

After what seemed to be hours, someone finally emerged from the bride's dressing room. It wasn't the bride obviously, oh no, everyone's heads would turn for that.

Instead, there entered into the aisles a yellow, relatively quiet bunny, who wore a bright blue dress that didn't entirely match the hi-tech spectacles resting on her nose. She made her way to her father's and Slippy's pew, which was but a few steps away.

"Hi guys!" Lucy Hare waved at the two men, as she pushed the smallest piece of her hair behind her ear.

Peppy and Slippy turned their heads to Lucy, and the rabbit in the wheelchair beamed.

"Ah! Lucy!" Peppy exclaimed while his daughter sat next to his frog assistant. "Good to see you here!"

"Hiya, Lucy." Slippy gave a quick nod to Lucy along with the most genuine grin he could muster. "How have you been? How's Krystal?"

"Oh, Krystal's...fine..." Lucy replied hesitantly, rubbing the back of her sore neck; one could be slammed against the wall by someone with violent anxiety too many times. "And as for me, I'm doing great! Just great..."

Lucy winced a little. Oh sure, what she said was true, if one didn't count the splitting head-ache a screeching bride and a rock-hard wall combined gave her. She then, however, straightened back up and turned to Slippy, with her expression suddenly changing to a beaming, confident air.

"Anyway, Slippy," Lucy flipped back her hair, which made her sapphire earrings flash for just a moment. "Notice anything...different?"

There were actually several different things about the rabbit that Slippy was almost expected to guess. Her hair was longer and her ears were pierced, which were the end results of two salon procedures Lucy had done over the past year or so; she didn't even appear to be Peppy Hare's daughter, but there she was, taking "Star Fox's time off" after the Anglar Wars to somewhat change her identity in the hopes to go from the insanely modest astrophysics major to a daring, perhaps even prettier girl in general.

And of course, Lucy made this change to not only make herself feel better, but she also made the changes to impress...a certain frog.

"Yeah..." Slippy took a good long look at the bunny, whose heart was fluttering and smile was glowing. Her emotions suddenly changed, however, when Slippy remarked with, "Are those new glasses?"

"Uh..." Lucy pushed the glasses she constructed herself back atop her nose. "Yeah. Yeah, they are."

"And uh...did you buy that dress?"

Lucy suddenly beamed. Maybe her dress could win her a compliment!

"Um...yes! Yes I did!"

"Oh..."

"...What's the matter?"

"I don't know. It just doesn't seem that blue would be your color." Slippy shrugged. Lucy's mouth hung a little open.

"He's right, Lucy." Peppy gave Lucy his honest opinion, which usually doesn't help one trying to fish for praise. "Maybe a...poppy flower type reddish color would have been better, hmm?"

Lucy's cheeks went red like a poppy flower. The one boy she tried to impress, she couldn't, and like her father helped. Thus, she sighed, slouching in her seat a little as Slippy and Peppy didn't quite notice her embarrassment. They were men who hadn't much interaction with women with the exception of a couple. What was one to expect of the lonely souls?

(*)

"Yes!" Beltino exclaimed, proud of his self-made communication program. It shouldn't have been much of a big deal, but the engineer was proud of anything he created that functioned. "We're in!"

Wolf didn't quite celebrate himself, as he squinted his one eye to better his focus on the screen and get a better look at the chameleon's perspective.

"Excellent, Leon." Wolf nodded at his wingman's response on the other line. "Glad to see you made it through the base unscathed."

"Well, you know me, boss," Leon Powalski gave a small yet menacing chuckle. "It wasn't _too _difficult…"

"Are you sure you're alright with just a switchblade?" Beltino asked the chameleon. "I can always send in re-enforcements or-"

"I'm just fine, Toad, I assure you." Leon cut off the engineer. "Now, where shall I take my lead from here?"

"Well…I can't exactly tell where you are…" Beltino hummed and rubbed his chin. "It's just so dark…"

It was virtually pitch black on the screen.

"Right. Perhaps I should take a…" Leon stroked the blade of his knife and snickered. "Stab in the dark?"

"It looks like you don't have a choice. Pick a passage, left or right." Wolf didn't worry as much as Beltino probably was, who appeared as though he was sweating bullet; the lupine knew too well that the chameleon knew he was doing.

"I'll go left. I'll message again if I come across any complications." Leon decided. "Just sit back and enjoy the show, boys."

"G-Good luck, Leon!" Beltino said. "And be careful!"

Leon huffed, turning his head around the corner. He immediately scampered down his left, metallic prosthetics for legs and feet not even making the faintest clang against the steel ground. Switchblade held behind him, Leon could see that the corridor was beginning to light up more with guards now appearing to line the hallway in pairs for about a hundred feet.

"LEON! LOOK OUT!" Beltino squealed, pointing at the screen filled with armed sentries. Wolf found it funny that Beltino was not used to this type of suspense; this was Leon Powalski that was assigned to this mission, and this was but a routine to the chameleon at this point.

Leon, not taking in the warning, thrust himself into the hoard of guards, ready to strike with switchblade at the ready…

(*)

A minute or so later, yet another female stormed out of the bride's dressing room, with frizzed hair and appearing frazzled herself. The pink toad clopped off across the expansive rows of pews, but not before Slippy hesitantly called to her,

"H-Hey...Amanda!"

The frog immediately stopped, running her fingers through her blonde locks almost as hastily as Fox did prior to being consoled. She turned towards the pew and brushed off her purple dress, which, besides color, looked quite similar to Lucy.

"Yeah?" Amanda Toad at first appeared interested, but right when she spotted the green mechanic, her mood seemed to change from attentive mixed with exasperated to awkward mixed with...well, exasperated.

Slippy pursed his lip and paused for a moment, until he replied with,

"Nice dress!" Lucy threw her own personal fit over this; she and Amanda picked out each other's dresses, for crying out loud.

"Oh! Um..." Amanda and Slippy's relationship was a little...off, to say the least. While many expected an engagement between the two, Amanda just couldn't see herself with the poor frog. She felt terrible for rejecting him, but he wasn't the one. She knew that, but sadly...he still didn't. "Thanks, Slippy."

Amanda then promptly made her move to the canopied balcony outside, not caring that it was raining. The temperature was at least nice, and after that _wonderful _experience tending to an over-reacting, extremely hostile vixen, she needed some fresh air.

(*)

Beltino's eyes were widened, considering that he never saw so much gore in his life since he rebelliously saw the ancient, human-originated film _Jaws _when he was a youngster. After the violence he saw the chameleon produce, causing a practical genocide of primate sentries, he needed a bigger stomach to gulp down what he just witnessed.

Leon still continued his trek forward, and lucky for him and the mission, it turned out left was right. The guards didn't seem to be coming at him much longer, and for a good reason. Even if there was not much more for Leon to attack and conquer, Beltino was still dumb-founded.

"Is Froggy alright over there, O'Donnell?" Leon asked his captain. "Haven't heard him croak in a while…"

Wolf stared down at the engineer, whose face looked greener than it already was.

"I'm sure he'll be fine." he answered. "Just a little…"

Wolf noticed that Beltino was on the urge of fainting.

"Frazzled."

"Ah. Of course." Leon wiped his knife with a bit of his full-body suit, bringing his stealth-like steps to a casual stroll.

The frog shuttered with a big gulp.

"N-No…no…I'm fine…" Beltino adjusted his glasses, still stammering and leaning back in his chair. "Looks like you're in front of the entrance of the…the security office."

"Mm-hmm." the chameleon stood before a steel, locked door, with a card scanner hooked up next to it.

"You picked up a key card along the way," Wolf stated. "Didn't you?"

"Hold on." Leon took out a key card from his suit pocket that he obtained from the last sentry he slit. He held it in front of the camera, showing off the card to the two viewers. "Here she is."

"Well, you know what to do."

Leon nodded, inserting the card in the scanner. In a matter of seconds, the door opened to a computer lab, with rows and rows of screens ten times bigger than that of the window Wolf and Beltino were staring at. In the center of the laboratory was the master monitor, with all the information of Base #13261 of Zoness. Rumor after rumor from intel stretched to Corneria's military sector of possible activity from Venomian radicals on the planet, more specifically having multiple troop rallies in the base.

There was also a specific piece of information that really hooked Corneria's military onto Zoness' investigation: there was apparently a new "ultimate weapon" constructed in Venom's strongholds, with Base #13261 being a possible construction site; this wasn't the first time Venom would have used Zoness as a "station away from station".

"I've made it. Now what?" Leon slowly advanced towards the master monitor.

"Take out that jump drive you got earlier." Beltino nodded once Leon showed the long plug with a small, black box attached to it. "Good. Now connect the drive to the monitor and make sure it completely loads on."

"Got it."

Leon quickly obeyed the order, plugging in the empty, unreadable drive. Binary codes and a mess of numerical fodder reeled off the screen as a result, along with a password bar.

"Okay, home stretch, Leon. We just have the password left to put in and we're good to go." Wolf let out a breath. "Ready?"

Leon smirked.

"Ready."

(*)

Finally, the last figure exited the dressing room, and she looked more stressed than the two predecessors combined. Fur ruffled, eyes widened, hair messed up...the feline was just the epitome of exhaustive efforts to keep a single person calm, only to resort to letting the one being consoled use your own formal, silver dress as her personal handkerchief and be slung around and get told about how "anything could go wrong at any moment", only to be asked how to handle something if something does, in fact, go wrong.

Katt Monroe made her way down the aisle with fast-paced, relentless strides. "Maid-of-honor" was a duty she still had to fulfill, even after being a piece of tissue paper, a ragdoll, and a not-so-sure responder of a comforter.

Once she strode down, however, Slippy and Peppy suddenly beamed.

"Wow! Katt's dress looks magnificent!" Slippy marveled at the shimmery gown.

"I know," Peppy agreed. "It sure is a sight for weary eyes."

Lucy took out her rain jacket, covered her face with it, and screamed into it. She was the one that helped Katt pick her dress. God FORBID someone actually LIKED the dress she picked for herself.

Katt finally stopped at the front of the aisle, rubbing her temple and almost having to lean against the podium.

"Well," Falco smirked, standing on the other side of the podium. "Look who finally decided to show up..."

The maid-of-honor glared at the best-man.

"Shut up." she bluntly growled. "You have no idea what it's like, dealing with someone so apprehensive... dealing with...with..._her..._"

"Try me." Falco retorted. "Fox has been squirrelly the whole way here, and not only that, but he's just been panicky over the damnedest of things. It's like he thinks that, if he messes up his vows or makes a simple mistake, he and Krystal are gonna go to hell, or somethin'."

"Well, is he okay?" Katt asked.

"I mean, yeah, but still. He's reassuring and all, but I think he's just...I dunno..." Falco folded his arms and shrugged. "Pressured, maybe? It's like he thinks he's trying to meet some expectation or somethin'. I dunno."

Falco stared down at his watch. Six minutes left.

"So," Falco hummed. "What's up with Krystal?"

Katt rolled her tired eyes, shaking her head.

"Get a load of this," she began. "She's apparently having a bunch of her 'visions' about every little thing going wrong. Fox tripping on his own two feet, her dropping his wedding ring...and the best one," Katt gave a weary chuckle. "Robotic monsters crashing into the ceiling. How wild is _that _one?"

The pheasant laughed a little, but at the same time, he kept in mind that Krystal's visions didn't lie all that much...especially when they had to do with her own safety or welfare.

"So," Katt changed subject, staring out at the large, highly decorated service. A couple of people here and there filled the pews, but that didn't add up to much. "Not many people here, huh?"

"Yeah. Ya know the two wanted to keep this as quiet as they could. Let's see," Falco looked around and pointed towards the back. "Slippy, Peppy and Lucy are back there,"

"And I saw Amanda step out on the balcony outside." Katt tisked. "Wow, are these really the only people Fox and Krystal decided to invite? I mean, I know they wanted to not invite _that _many people, but..."

"No. They invited more, some people just aren't here." Falco shrugged again. "Bill is currently stationed in Fichina while his wife is five months pregnant, General Pepper's health isn't doing so hot, a lot of Fox's friends during Flight Academy days are dead or stationed in the farthest stretch of Lylat, we can't exactly fit many dinosaurs in here, and Star Wolf is here, it's just that I've only seen them for, like, five minutes since they got here. And-"

"Wait...Fox and Krystal invited _Star Wolf _and they actually _showed up_?"

"Yup."

"...Why did they…?"

"Eh. I dunno. Fox's idea. Somethin' about 'not burning bridges' or 'appreciating their recent services to the team' or somethin' like that. But yeah. They showed up for some reason, unbelievably..."

Katt leaned in closer. She was one to enjoy gossip, especially that dished by her closest companion, who also so happened to easily be her most reliable source.

"And ya know what's weird?"

"What?"

"Wolf immediately asked where Slippy's dad was when he got here…weird, huh?"

(*)

"Alright." Beltino pulled up a smaller window on the laptop, which brought up a list of different codes, leading up to the one code for Base #13261. "The password is…"

Leon had his fingers perfectly positioned upon the keys.

"VE/,"

"VE/…" Leon typed in "V", "E", and a diagonal slash. He waited for the next combination of letters, numbers, or symbols.

"BZ/,"

"BZ/…"

"13261V."

"132…61…V." Leon finished typing in the password, an re-read it aloud, "VE/BZ/13261V. Is this correct?"

Beltino read over the code himself and promptly nodded.

"Yes, that's it. Enter that password and we should be good to go…"

Leon pushed the enter key, and a loading bar appeared. Once the loading bar reached 100%, all the information of possible Venom activity would be in Coneria's database thanks to the most dangerous assassin and stealth operative in all of Lylat.

The bar was at 20%...

"Do you two not have a wedding to attend to?" Leon's eyes were attentive on the monitor. 37%...

"Yes, we do," Beltino looked down at his watch. "And it looks like it's actually about to start…"

44%...

"And I bet Panther's just getting a kick out of all this, isn't he, Wolf?"

"I'm surprised he even decided to show up." Wolf shrugged his shoulders and just couldn't help but chuckle. "Told him he could stay behind if he honestly wanted to…"

67%...

"And what was his reasoning to do otherwise?"

"Didn't really say." Wolf shook his head. "Damn, is his reasoning off sometimes."

80%...

Almost there…

"Yes, tell me about-"

Suddenly, static cut through Leon's voice and the overall view of the monitor in Beltino and Wolf's screen. Beltino immediately began to pound on the keys, fingers flying. The laptop itself began to go wonky, cutting off and on every second. Wolf perked up, ears pricked upward.

"What's going on?" Wolf gestured at the screen.

"I…I don't know…" the toad was baffled, shaking his head almost violently. "It looks like our own network has been breached!"

Wolf adjusted the microphone right in front of his lips, pressing the earpiece as hard as he could against his ear.

"Leon? Leon?!" Wolf barked into the microphone. "Answer me, damnit! LEON!"

It took a few moments for Wolf to get this faint reply back,

"I-...ga-...oh-...Wo-"

And then, static.

(*)

"Now," Falco squinted his eyes in thought. "Panther _might _be outside, I guess, Wolf must've met up with Slippy's pop, since like I said, I haven't seen him OR Slippy's pop in a while…"

"And what about Leon?" Katt inquired.

Falco sneered a little.

"He ain't here. Ain't it grand?"

(*)

Beltino took his hands off the keys, with his laptop screen helplessly fidgeting and spastically flicking on and off, until finally, the laptop shut itself off. The toad let out a breath, until he finally sighed,

"Well…it looks like we've lost connection with him."

Wolf glared at the toad and slammed his headset on the table.

"Well, no shit we lost connection…" he growled with bare teeth.

He stormed out of the study, feet clomping to the ceremony. Beltino was shuffling right behind Wolf.

"I mean, I just don't understand what could've gone wrong!" the toad gasped in bewilderment. "I have virus protection software, calibrated and re-calibrated the RAM, re-wired my hard drive…"

"All we can bet on now is that Leon's alright." Wolf bluntly remarked. "There isn't anything more we can-"

The lupine paused after the ground shook for just a moment. Beltino's glasses fell right off his nose because of this vibration. He knelt down and felt around for his spectacles. Wolf looked up at the ceiling to notice the light fixture above sway back and forth.

"What the hell is going on around here…?"

(*)

At last, it was time for the ceremony to commence. Fox McCloud stepped out of his dressing room, tightening his bowtie. He cleared his throat, making his way to the front of the aisle. Once he reach his destination, Falco couldn't help but grin.

"Well," he whispered to the groom. "Look who finally decided to show up…"

Katt laughed to herself as Fox grinned.

"Hey Falco?" Fox said.

"Hmm?" Falco replied.

It took Fox a moment, but he nodded and responded with a genuine,

"Thanks."

Falco patted Fox on the back.

"Not a problem, man." Falco remarked. "Not a problem…"

A minute or so later, the blue vixen everyone waited for showed up at the end of the aisle, accompanied by the melodies of an organ.

Krystal's wedding dress shimmered against the shiny urns and soft candlelight. The train was a few feet long, with her veil cascading down her face. Fox beamed when he saw her, and Katt couldn't help but grin herself. Lucy was finally not tempered, and Peppy and Slippy were incredibly amazed. Amanda was still outside for some reason, however…and Wolf, Beltino, or even Panther could be spotted in the miniscule crowd.

But Fox, nor Krystal, seemed to care. This was it. After years of joy and heartbreak, all their work to make things right between them finally paid off on this one day. They were right for each other. They knew that far too well…there was nothing that could make either one of them any happier.

But there could be something to make the peaceful ceremony chaotic relatively quickly…

Vibrations were felt throughout the ceremony, with every guest within the service suddenly baffled by the feeling of unbalance. And not only that…but the blue vixen collapsed midway on her stride to the altar, with her palm on her forehead.

Fox immediately ran to his soon-to-be bride, as Slippy, Peppy and Lucy sprung up from their seats.

"Krystal?" Fox shook the vixen over and over again. "Krystal?!"

…No response.

"KRYSTAL?!" Fox shook her once more, as Krystal winced with her hand still over her head.

"N-No…" she muttered. "Stop…don't come…here…"

"Krystal…what are you…"

Krystal fainted once more, uttering no more information. The palace's interior shook violently, until a vision Krystal feared most became a reality…

* * *

_**It was actually really difficult to decide putting Star Wolf in this chapter or not. Putting in the transitions was rather hard to do, and I hope that they weren't TOO out of place. Thank you as always for reading, and as always, inputs/suggestions are always appreciated. :)**_

_**Til next update,**_

_**-BAA**_


	4. Something A Little Unexpected

The vibrations became faster and more powerful in a quick instant.

"Fox...?" Falco neared towards Fox, who was kneeling at his fiancée's side, shaking her in desperation. The vulpine began to pant and breathe heavily.

"She's not waking up, Falco…" Fox shook his head and bit his lip.

"Any other day…" he murmured in his head. "Any other day but today if it had to happen in the first place…"

"Ya feel a pulse?" Falco's voice got louder as he tried to keep his balance. Fox took his middle and index finger, placing them against the unconscious vixen's wrist. He nodded, not looking up at his wingman.

"You gotta take her outta here, Fox!"

"But what about-"

Fox was interrupted by the loud, threatening creak of the chandelier right above him. From the corner of his eye, he saw the pheasant stick his wing under the left side of his jacket as he stared above him.

"Dude, you gotta go!"

"B-But-"

_Creeeeeeeeeeeek…_

"GO, DAMNIT!" Falco bellowed, with the sound of windows rattling furiously behind him. His teeth clenched with a fist wrapped tightly around his hand-gun; Falco wanted his captain and his lady away from this action…or there would be hell to pay for it. "GO!"

The vulpine let out a sigh. He wanted he and his love safe, oh sure, but what about the rest of the team? He stared down at his fiancée, scooped her up, and sprinted out of the chapel, leaving his wingman and the rest of his team-mates behind.

(*)

"Oh…oh _where _are my glasses?!" Beltino winced, tapping the ground of the corridor continuously, groaning in frustration whenever his hand met the floor and no rim of his spectacles. "W-Wolf…Wolf…can you get down here and help me look for them? C-Can you…please?"

The lupine didn't respond. Instead, he glared at the chandelier above him, which clacked around the ceiling furiously, until…

_SMASH!_

The chandelier slammed against the marble floor just a few feet away from Wolf, who barely flinched. Beltino, however, was heard letting out a blood-curdling shriek, which was the last thing that left his muzzle before he froze and fell on his side. Wolf stared down at the now petrified frog, and he groaned.

"Well, that's great...like father, like son, I suppose…" he groaned to himself as he scooped the frog up.

The shaking made him slightly unsteady, but he was still stable enough to keep the engineer in his grasp. He turned his head left and right, with his good eye glaring down both directions.

"The hell can we go?" Wolf asked himself quickly. "Back to the study?"

He didn't know much about the place. It was a big palace on a planet he only went to this one time. Chances were that he would have no time to leave the palace, and even if he did, where would he possibly go in this storm?

…And what could possibly be occurring outside?

Wolf growled again, huffing as the two-hundred pound amphibian didn't quite make his trek to possible shelter that much of a brisk promenade.

(*)

"Krystal? K-Krystal?"

Fox was beginning to get uneasy, as the thought of his fiancée not waking up or him even dropping her flooded through his mind, before possibly finding any means of shelter. He hated the fact that he let one idea of danger pile atop another, before considering the matter at hand.

He found himself moving in a rapid pace across the corridor, faster than he would if he wanted to in the midst of no danger at all. Though he thought too much of attacks, he could easily act upon them.

He learned not to hesitate, but act when the time came…he just never learned much about focus.

"Krystal?" Time and time again, Fox would look down at the vixen in his arms, stroking back her hair and just looking for a sign that she was alright. "If you can hear me…tell me. Please…"

No response.

Fox continued a few more feet, biting his lip even more. He heard vibrations, noises…but none of that seemed to matter. If he could get he and his lover safe, he wouldn't care if he and his fiancée were trapped in a fraternity rave in the middle of a 7.0 magnitude earthquake.

They'd be alive, at least…

…But what about…

"Shut up, Fox!" Fox demanded of himself. "Falco's right. You have to get yourself and Krystal out of all this! The team can handle themselves…right?"

…Right?

(*)

Slippy began to scream hysterically in the back, as each window in the chapel shattered one by one; his screams were so loud, it would be simple to assume that the shattered glass was his doing. The wind howled, with the rain sputtering through the large gaps of the walls.

"Oh my God…" Lucy winced, biting hard on her fist; it was her nervous habit, since her nails were done to their nubs and she spent too much on doing up her hair to gnaw on it. "W-What's going on?!"

The rain became harder. The wind became louder. Not a single soul could hear themselves.

Out of the corner of Peppy Hare's weary eye, a blur of black and pink darted away from the balcony, making a barely visible dash out of the chapel. The elderly rabbit believed he knew what the blur consisted of…and he knew that leaving the place as soon as possible wouldn't be such a bad idea.

And in the front, Falco had his hand-gun at the ready, with Katt clenching her fists at his side.

"Katt," Falco bellowed. "You oughta get outta here, ya think?"

The feline shook her head, smirking.

"No way." she stated loudly to her companion. "I'm far too curious now!"

Falco turned his head to her and couldn't help but grin a little himself.

"Alright then," he said, reaching into the other side of his jacket. "But you're gonna need this…"

A silver hand-gun peeked out of his tuxedo jacket, and Katt's cobalt eyes sparkled as her paw grasped around the handle.

"You came with two guns?"

"I always come prepared for special occasions! Y'oughta know that by now, Kit-Katt!"

Kit-Katt. A nickname the feline had no choice to go by since Falco made it so. He usually called her such a name during a time where there was some peril to laugh at.

That was the time, she surmised.

The roof became unstable, and the windows became the entryways for…

"…Who in the…?!"

(*)

"F-Fox…"

A faint murmur was heard from the vixen, and Fox immediately tensed up a little. She was alive. Good.

Now he had to make it stay that way.

The vixen's veil dangled down to Fox's feet as he slowly paced down further down the corridor…which had an eerie aura to it. He kept feeling his feet kick against Krystal's flowing veil, and he finally winced in frustration, tearing the cheap veil away from his unofficial bride's head and tossing it behind him.

He furthered his trek…

But suddenly found an obstacle in his path.

"Strange…when did this chandelier fall?"

Fox turned his head upward, where what was left of the ceiling was a long in width crack and a gaping hole that gave way for small portions of water to seep through. The vulpine found it best to step around the chandelier…but he couldn't help but think of where all this impact came from.

Or if the ceiling would cave in or not.

Or if they'd be able to find a place of shelter in time.

"UGH, WILL YOU STOP ALREADY?!"

He growled at himself and marched forward, until he abruptly stopped once more, feeling a crunch against his metallic foot. The vulpine immediately looked downward…and growled again.

Fox didn't have the urge to cordially leave his bride on the ground for the time being and pick up the now destroyed spectacles of Beltino Toad, but he didn't find much of a purpose. He did, however, figure two things.

One, Slippy's father must have been close by, and two…well, he'd probably be far too weak to perhaps slap him across the shoulder until it stung. Maybe the worst he would get from Beltino would be…say…getting scolded? If Beltino would even recognize him with his stellar vision, that is.

He took just a few feet more, with every step echoing and the corridor getting colder and more damp the further Fox advanced.

Silence…until…

"…Unh…FOX! F-FOX!" Krystal stuttered, eyes opening quickly.

"W-What?!" Fox stared into the widened pupils of his bride, who was rapidly turning her head in all directions and clasped tightly around her groom's neck. "Krystal…what are you…"

Her breath stifled at the entrance before them. The door was ajar, as a lupine turned his head away from his then opponents, whom he quickly gained his victory from.

"Well," Wolf fully turned around to show he was armed with a machine gun to his name. "Look who finally decided to show up…"

"Been looking for you all day..." Fox huffed, heart slowing just a little. Krystal's breath, however, was still rattled.

"Oh. Right. Well," Wolf pointed at the passed out engineer in the corner. "You know that we had business to attend to. We lost connection, though."

"How-"

"No idea. Talked to him for a few minutes, gave him the password, then zip. We lost him. It'll be fun explaining it all to 'General Hare'."

"...And you have a machine gun with you?"

"What? And you don't? Hmph, talk about not being prepared for your own wedding." Wolf huffed, tapping the barrel of the gun delicately. "Anyway...check this out..."

Wolf stepped out of the way to display a wounded body. A body in a form that was slightly...unexpected.

"What the...?"

(*)

It began with a soldier. Just a mere adversary, with one bullet going through it from the pheasant's barrel and it would thus go down.

But soon, that soldier led to an army. An army that swarmed the chapel that would be virtually unthinkable to escape from. They landed on all four corners of the palace, roof included, and made their entrance through the broken windows, advancing towards the five that were determined to fight for their captain's sake...and for their lives, even.

"OHGODOHGODOHGODNONONONO!" Slippy panicked from his pew, shakily inhaling and exhaling with every breath of his inhaler from his European man-satchel he consumed. Lucy made her best attempts to aid her father, guarding him with swift slaps towards the men surrounding the three. Slippy tried guard duty as well, but the enemy rampage ended with him hiding under his pew, praying to every deity that ever existed, and calling a silent truce.

Lucy, while defending she, her father, and the cowardly amphibian, also thought of who these soldiers were. Whoever arranged this attack was obviously informed of this wedding beforehand. Who else would go out of their way to go to Sauria? One would wanted to pet an extinct species?

She used her home-made glasses to further understand her surroundings. Its lenses had the ability to thoroughly examine any official Lylatian-registered organism and give brief descriptions of said organism. The focus was currently directed towards a more slender ruffian, who made no taunts, no rants, no verbal responses to the three.

A loading bar appeared before the rabbit's left eye, and a few lines of text appeared next to the soldier in view.

Lucy, however...was astonished...

_NAME: UNKNOWN_

_PLANET OF ORIGIN: UNKNOWN_

_GENDER: 72% MALE, 28% UNKNOWN_

_SPECIES: 63% LYNX, 37% UNKNOWN_

_HEIGHT: 6'2''_

_WEIGHT: 270 LB_

_STATUS: UNKNOWN_

Never has anything been "unknown" to her...especially in percentages.

"Who are these guys?!" Katt roared, slamming her fist against a soldier and letting a bullet go through another's head.

"I dunno..." Falco dodged a laser from behind him. "But they sure as hell know how to put on a show, huh?"

"Now's no time for games, Falco! This is serious! Who are these people?! What're they here for?!"

"Just sayin' Katt, this is the perfect time for games!" Falco retorted. "It keeps it interesting for us, ya know? Besides, I-"

Falco felt his fist go through the head he meant to leave a bruise or two upon. He glared abruptly to see sparks fly and wires bust, with metal framing the middle part of his arm. He froze. Katt whirled around to see why the action paused...and she was astonished herself.

"Wait...what the..."

"Are these...nah!" Falco laughed a little, prying his fist away from the gaping hole. "How can robots climb through the rain like that?"

"I-It's gotta be some type of weird, fancy wiring or something...and they're not just robots, Falco," Katt thought for a moment, until she stated, "They're..."

(*)

"Cyborgs." Wolf pointed downward at his lone enemy, whose chest was filled with bullets and all that came out of the adversary was sparks...with merely a slight tinge of blood. "Your wedding's just been crashed...by cyborgs."

* * *

_***stares at today's date* OHMYGODIT'SBEENOVERAMONTHIDON'TEVENWHAT**_

_**Holy HEAVENS, I'm so sorry for neglecting this story for so long. I'll admit: writing this beginning was WAAAAY harder than expected. (And on that note, sorry if this chapter feels rushed…) I had no idea how to continue this story…but now I think I'll be able to continue on a little better from here. (Yeah, how many times have you heard THAT one before?) I'm trying to adjust, and like said before, I DO think I will be able to progress forward better. Sorry for the irregularity. #needstoupdatemore…#IHATEHASHTAGS…**_

_**And as for any other notes, I've got some:**_

_**My favorite Star Fox quote ever was referenced somewhere in this story..."Don't hesitate! When the time comes, just act!" Granted, it's not direct...but see if you can find it! ;)**_

_**Also, sorry if this all seems rushed. Really. This is a meaty beginning...just don't wanna overcook it, ya know? XD Hopefully, however, this chapter made up for some lost time. (I did, like, the best job evar with Slippy's character, yes? XD) I would make this chapter longer, but I didn't wanna overdo it...so...yep.**_

_**Reviewing/critiquing/any ideas or suggestions for the story are as appreciated as always. Thanks as always for reading. :)**_

_**-BAA**_


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